Singapore Tatler Jewels & Time
EDITOR’S NOTE
It’s funny how, in the
span of just one year, so much has changed. Exactly 12 months ago, I spoke about how I wasn’t hooked on social media. Today, as I sit down to pen this note, I have already checked my Instagram feed twice and the Bulgari Octo Velocissimo spotted on the wrist of an Instagrammer has already catapulted to a pretty high spot on my lust list.
I do not have to expound on the effects of social media that have already been said, but the question, pertaining solely to the luxury watch and jewellery industry, begs to be asked: do Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat result in direct sales, and how effective are they in increasing brand awareness? Given that most watchmaking and jewellery brands do not sell their big-ticket items online, it is harder to quantify and gauge the impact of social media, and whether it translates to revenue.
At Singapore Tatler Jewels & Time, we connect the purveyors of luxury with consumers. Hence, when it comes to the changing digital landscape, we wanted to find out how the target audience is reacting to the proliferation of social media and its use as a tool of marketing and communication. The answer was simple: go directly to the source. We speak to the constantly connected generation and discover how much influence the Internet wields on their buying patterns. Some of their answers might surprise you, on p.68.
Speaking of the changing tides of luxury, the current economic and political climates have deeply affected the global watch and jewellery markets. The launches and campaigns we’ve seen this year are more than just temporary stopgap solutions until the next boom. There has been a seismic movement in the behavioural patterns of consumers, and the subsequent responses from the brands. We get incisive insights from guest editor Sean Li, whom collectors would know as our editorial director for watches, and a judge on the panel of the Grand Prix d’horlogerie de Genève. He weighs in on how watch brands have reacted to this brewing economic storm (p.22).
Despite talks of safer launches, designers at the high jewellery maisons have certainly not scrimped on creativity and scale, and have launched some of their best haute joaillerie collections yet. Ogle at the marvellous creations on p.58.
Enjoy the issue!